Personal tools

The Role of Data in Today’s Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) Programs

Last month I had the opportunity to attend a Sustainability Practice Network discussion at Baruch College here in New York. The topic, Under the Hood: Corporate Sustainability 2014 was a broad-based discussion of Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) programs including their development, implementation and the data that is derived from them.
As someone still learning the intricacies of ESG, it was reassuring to note that this topic, or better, this idea, is truly still a work in progress. Why? Because today’s corporations are implementing ESG-based programs differently across industries, and the data that is created is being used in a multitude of ways.

Matt VanTassel

The Role of Data in Today’s Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) Programs

As someone still learning the intricacies of ESG, it was reassuring to note that this topic, or better, this idea, is truly still a work in progress. Why? Because today’s corporations are implementing ESG-based programs differently across industries, and the data that is created is being used in a multitude of ways.

Citi’s Assistant Vice President of Sustainability, Davida Heller laid out an impressive array of information on Citi’s programs and how they weigh social and environmental concerns when making investments. Citi tracks risks associated with anything from social discussions to environmental risks, for clients and their internal initiatives. You can review their numerous programs and stances on each topic here.

As a former Bloomberger, I always like to know what’s brewing at Bloomberg. While the company has a long-standing environmental policy (their forks are made out of potatoes!), there is also a department and functions that cater to culling and analyzing this data. Senior ESG Analyst Su Gao provided interesting statistics on how ESG-related data is being consumed by Bloomberg terminal users. There has been a nice uptick in data usage (48%), confirming that analysts and investors are looking beyond balance sheets and cash flow statements when making opinions and investment decisions. ({ESG } on the terminal)